Thursday, March 08, 2018

AUSTRALIA: CELEBRATE DIVERSITY - MIXED ORIGINS FOR THE ARTISTS

Australia is now taking part for the fourth time in Eurovision song contest and has been faitful for its idea of selecting artists of mixed origins, if that has been intentional - I think I read somewhere it is or at least was for the first three participations. Either way, Jessica Mauboy continues the trend.

Guy Sebastian was born in Malaysia and moved to Australia with his family when he was six. His father has Malaysian Indian and Tamil blood with a hint of Ceylonese and Portuguese. His mother is English-Portuguese and was raised in India. He later became the very first Australian Idol in 2003.

Dami Im is pure South Korean. She moved to Australia when she was nine and represents the large Korean population in the country. She won X Factor Australia in 2013.

Yorta Yorta art

Isaiah Firebrace is a real Australian aboriginal. His father is Yorta Yorta and his mother is Gunditjmara. He won X Factor Australia 2016 and went on to Eurovision within months.

Jessica Mauboy already served the first Australian Eurovision experience when being the interval act in Copenhagen 2014 contest and is a Australian Idol 2006 runner up. She's half Indonesian by her father's side, while her mother is indigenous Australian, of Kuku Yalanji people in the rainforests of Far North Queensland.

Kuku Yalanji people

This blogger is all for this diversity when it comes to natives and minorities in various countries, even if they are rather mainstream and washed off and you can hardly tell a difference. However, it gives a nice back story and that extra something.

Maybe next year we will havee someone from Torres Strait Islands? Christine Anu? Anyone else?

Or will it be Anthony Callea finally to bring in some Italian? Or NATG aka Natalia Gauci with a bit of Malta?